ISLAMABAD: In a major development, US President Donald Trump revealed on Wednesday that both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy expressed a desire for peace during separate phone calls. Following these conversations, Trump ordered top US officials to initiate negotiations to bring an end to the ongoing war in Ukraine.
This comes after Trump’s defense secretary signaled a shift in Washington’s stance, stating that Kyiv must abandon its long-standing goals of joining NATO and reclaiming territories seized by Russia.
Trump, who spoke with Putin for over an hour, confirmed that the Russian leader seeks to end the war and is open to discussions about achieving a ceasefire in the near future. Trump expressed optimism, stating, “I think we’re on the way to getting peace. I think President Putin wants peace, President Zelenskyy wants peace, and I want peace. I just want to see people stop getting killed.”
The Kremlin later confirmed that Putin and Trump had agreed to meet, with the Russian president inviting Trump to Moscow. Trump suggested their first meeting could take place soon in Saudi Arabia.
Trump’s team, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, National Security Adviser Michael Waltz, and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, will lead negotiations aimed at ending the war. Additionally, Trump and Zelenskyy spoke after the call with Putin, with Zelenskyy noting a meaningful conversation focused on potential peace opportunities and Ukraine’s technological capabilities.
As the conflict nears its third anniversary, no peace talks have been held since the early months. President Joe Biden’s administration, which provided substantial military aid to Ukraine, refrained from direct contact with Putin.
In the latest shift, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth stated that it is unrealistic for Ukraine to recover all territories seized by Russia since 2014, or to achieve NATO membership. He warned that pursuing these “illusionary goals” would only prolong the war and cause more suffering. He also emphasized that any durable peace agreement must include robust security guarantees for Ukraine but assured that US troops would not be deployed to the country.
Meanwhile, the European Union, along with Germany, France, Poland, Italy, Spain, and the UK, expressed support for Ukraine’s sovereignty and insisted that Kyiv must be actively involved in any peace agreement.
In an effort to continue securing US support, Zelenskyy has proposed a deal where the United States would invest in Ukraine’s mineral resources as a post-war “security shield.” Trump’s Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, also visited Kyiv on Wednesday to discuss potential investments.
The diplomatic shift follows a US-Russia prisoner swap, which Moscow said could help build trust between the two nations. Russia released American schoolteacher Marc Fogel in exchange for a Russian cybercrime boss held in the US.
